Purple Daisy Picnic Café (Revisit)

So, this was not supposed to be a Purple Daisy revisit post. We were actually planning to go to Zarzour’s since I’ve been told that a Chattanooga burger list is invalid if Zarzour’s is not a consideration. I tried to call them to see if they take credit cards (does anyone know the answer to this?) and got no answer…so they either were too busy to answer or they were closed for Good Friday. We decided not to take the chance and instead went to Purple Daisy. I’ve been before, but want to try the burger and the barbecue (I always order the rainbow sandwich).

The place was pretty busy right at noon but we were immediately seated at a table outside. The server took our drink order and I decided to deviate from my usual water and have fruit tea instead. The fruit tea is a blend of tea, juices, and spices. It tastes mostly like tea and pineapple juice…it’s a little tart and a little sweet and very delicious.

Since a burger was my mission, I didn’t have to think about my order at all. I decided on the single ($4.95…there’s a double for $7.95) with Cheddar cheese, lettuce, tomato, pickle, mayo, mustard, and ketchup. I decided to get hash brown casserole instead of the chips that come with the burger, because has brown casserole is a non-negotiable when I go to the Purple Daisy. It’s creamy, cheesy, and very flavorful, just like my mom makes it. The burger is charcoal grilled. It was well-cooked and tasted like a burger you’d get at a cookout. I’d rate it a 3 for meat-well-seasoned, cooked through just right, and with a nice grilled flavor. For bread, I’ll give it a 3-standard soft bun like you’d get in the bread aisle of a grocery store. For cheese, a 4…a decent amount of Cheddar, melted on top; for toppings, a 3-just the standard toppings, maybe a little too heavy on the condiments. For structural integrity, I’ll give it a 3 as well. It held together pretty well until I got to the middle, when the ample condiments started sliding around on the lettuce and tomato and it pretty much fell apart. Size? A 4.5…it was a good-sized burger, not so huge that I felt stuffed but definitely not small. Overall burger score: 3.4.

Philip decided to get the pork barbecue tacos with a side of hot slaw (extra-they don’t come with a side). The tacos came on flour tortillas with cheddar cheese, iceberg lettuce, and a little bit of original barbecue sauce plus a small cup of sour cream. The barbecue here is very good-fresh tasting, shredded (not chopped), smoky, and moist. They offer three sauces: original, sweet, and hot. Philip didn’t care for the sweet much but liked the hot and the original. The tacos overall were very tasty, simple enough to allow the flavor of the pork to shine through. The slaw? HOT. Philip isn’t very sensitive to spicy foods and he found the hot slaw very hot, seasoned with cayenne and with chopped jalapeños mixed in. Again, very fresh, very flavorful, but don’t plan on eating all of it unless you are used to eating very spicy food.

I love The Purple Daisy Picnic Café, and apparently a lot of other people do too. The place was full the whole time that we were there and people were coming in and out the whole time. The food at The Purple Daisy is very consistent. The menu is fairly limited-barbecue, burgers, deli sandwiches, hot dogs, salads, and a few other items, plus sides and a couple of desserts (Oreo dirt cake and banana pudding)-allowing them to focus on serving flavorful and fresh food. I highly recommend The Purple Daisy! By the way, our pre-tip total for one drink, a burger, pork tacos, and 2 sides was just under $20.

We just went to The Purple Daisy for the first time last week! I had the burger and Joe had the tacos. We also tried the hash brown casserole and the Brunswick stew. Everything was very good, and you're right about the burger - it was just like the backyard cookout burgers I remember when I was a kid.

My family actually tried the Purple Daisy last week for the first time, too. I got the rainbow sandwich (though I traded out the cucumber part for another layer of pimento cheese). It didn't blow my mind, but it was solidly good and definitely fun. But the service was definitely lacking and I was bummed when learning that their tomato bisque soup came from a packet (we asked if it contained any wheat and that's how we learned that it was pre-made). It's always a bummer to me when an item like that isn't made in-house. I'd rather it just not be on the menu! But with all of that said, I didn't try the bbq, and that feels like a fail on my part, so I'll likely try again.